Greg McElroy buried under 11 sacks in his starting debut

Posted by Josh Alper on December 23, 2012, 4:28 PM EDT

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The argument that Mark Sanchez was the only problem with the Jets was put to rest at the Meadowlands on Sunday.

Greg McElroy was sacked 11 times, turned the ball over twice and the Jets defense got beaten for a couple of Philip Rivers touchdown passes en route to a 27-17 loss. McElroy and the offensive line were both to blame for the high sack total as they alternated between not blocking well and holding onto the ball way too long over the course of the afternoon. Kendall Reyes had 3.5 sacks for the Chargers, Shaun Phillips dropped McElroy 2.5 times and Corey Liuget added two more to lead the sack parade for San Diego.

All of those sacks made it possible for the Chargers offense to wake up after an awful first half performance. Rivers hit Danario Alexander for a 37-yard score and Antonio Gates scored on a 34-yard strike as the Chargers rang up 20 straight points after falling behind 14-7 in the first half of the game. Rivers, who was sacked four times himself, was just 11-of-22 for 165 yards on the day. That indicates how little the Chargers offense did overall, but there were no turnovers from a quarterback who has had too many of them and that was enough to beat the Jets.

There’s no erasing the damage done this season for either team, but the Chargers avoided doing any more on Sunday. That’s enough to beat the Jets, whose damage meter keeps on rising.

Hate to say it, but teams need to start mimicking the Pats scheme. Not easy to get the same protection they have given Brady most of his career, but the little quick passes and dump offs have always worked well in the Pats offense. Receivers get open most of the time, and I think part of it is due to how they run the offense.

Everything the Jets are doing on Offense is a complete mess. Entire offensive coaching staff needs to be canned.

pickney1 says:Dec 23, 2012 5:14 PM

The problem with the Jets are greater than the play of a quarterback, when you have an owner who is more concerned with his pockets than the product on the field this is what happens.

When you see the talent on the field getting less and less every year the likely hood to have a season like this is prominent. The problem with the Jets is comes from the decision makers, it becomes easy to blame a quarterback or a coach rather than realizing the root of all issues for the Jets.

The Chargers have had 18 new people during the year on offense. They’re a mess because of that but there has never been an issue with the defense this year. John Pagano has done a great job for a first year defensive ccordinator.

ambitoos, not true in some cases. 4th and 29, 35 straight points by Denver, 17 by NO, the total collapse against Carolina. Those are issues by the defense so to say Pagano has done a ‘great’ job for a first year coordinator are not exactly true. Fair job, OK job, but not a ‘great’ job, not with the stats I just laid out which are NFL record setting type pathetic.

I did say more teams need to copy the Pats offense, but as far as the Jets go, they need to just do anything but what they have been doing. They have a new coordinator this season and didnt look much different than last year, perhaps worse.

It really is a combination of their Offensive scheme, coaching, and players. Failures at every level.

trapshoot says:Dec 23, 2012 6:02 PM

Ah yes, the Jets……

thefox61 says:Dec 23, 2012 6:22 PM

I fallen, and I can’t get up!

g35phin says:Dec 23, 2012 6:24 PM

They were giving away sacks at MetLife stadium like is was Christmas… oh wait

bonniebengal says:Dec 23, 2012 6:45 PM

I suppose this is Tebow’s fault too? I hope he gets a real chance somewhere.

From the top down the Jets are a mess; Woody Johnson,,,,really with a name like that he shouldn’t be allowed to own a team. Tannenbaum oh Tannenbaum, you need to sign another long term fat contract to an over the hill player who’s best years have past (Buress, S. Holmes, Favre, L.Tomlinson ect.) Rex your a defensive coach, word of advise let someone else hire an offensive coordinator. Suckchez, Teeblow or Sack el roy, does it really matter,,,,,,,,,,,SAME OLE JETS.

wahoo21 says:Dec 23, 2012 7:02 PM

The Jets need to get rid of “sunglass” tony sparano while they are at the housecleaning that should be underway as we speak.
Rex should be gone
Sanchez needs to go back to SoCal and get a job
Tebow is NOT a quarterback

Really hard to be a Jets fan

tommynatorii says:Dec 23, 2012 7:13 PM

It’s not the o-line’s fault! Tony Sparano is an o-line guru! Sparano fixed all of Miami’s problems when he was there!

lrjets says:Dec 23, 2012 7:57 PM

wahoo21 says:Dec 23, 2012 7:02 PM

The Jets need to get rid of “sunglass” tony sparano while they are at the housecleaning that should be underway as we speak.
Rex should be gone
Sanchez needs to go back to SoCal and get a job
Tebow is NOT a quarterback

Sparano had an accident years ago and is permanantly unable to take daylight. So that’s the tip of your “intelligence iceberg”? Sanchez should back to Southern Cal and get a job?
I’d venture to say with all seriousness, he makes more in a month, then you’ll make in your pathetic life. This is not a get back to you. Think of it.
Car wash cashiers don’t so that well.

cuda1234 says:Dec 23, 2012 8:05 PM

But I thought the mere presence of Timothy Richard Tebow magically inspired his teammates to “play harder”? I thought he was a “winner” who could single-handedly “will his team to victory”? Isn’t that what we’ve all been told? Where was that today?

And how bad is TRT if McElroy, Sanchez, Kerley AND Shonn Green all get more snaps at qb than the most divisive and over-hyped player in the game?

McElroy was great out there. Learning on the job with no one who knows how to play around him but Greene and Edwards. The GM, OC and DC will be gone next year. So, what happens to Rex? Any chance Cowher comes in?